In a world full of gas-electric hybrid, plug-in hybrid, and fully electric luxury cars, even the most extensively refined internal combustion engines cannot match the smooth and silent push from an electric motor.

As ever, the New York International Auto Show proved to be an exciting one, filled past the brim with some dynamite new production cars from the likes of Jaguar (the new XF), McLaren (the 570S), and Porsche (the Boxster Spyder). But the two carmakers that stole the lion’s share of the spotlight from all others were a pair of home-grown heroes: Cadillac and Lincoln.

There’s no doubt about it, Cadillac is on a roll. Or, to be more precise, they continue to be on a roll. Things began to turn around for the brand previously associated with Sansabelt slacks when the first-generation CTS sedan appeared in 2002.

I am in the Florida Keys. I am driving a Cadillac equipped with a state-of-the-art navigation system. But there is really only one place to go: the Overseas Highway, running over a long causeway from Key West all the way to the mainland, with the waves of the Atlantic lapping on my right and the warm Gulf of Mexico to my left. My challenge: Can I still manage to get lost?